Oddballs
by Crazy Amazing
Summary: A thief wants possession of a necklace that could possibly have come from Jirachi. Who is there to stop this crime? A baby Swablu, a paranoid Psyduck, a claustrophobic Sandshrew, a smitten Vulpix and an Ivysaur who seems to hate the world. Naturally.
1. Day Care

Day Care

The phrase 'Day Care' was exceptionally misleading, in Ivysaur's opinion. It suggested they were only going to be there during the day and at night their teenage trainer Andy, would take them home. That didn't happen. 'Care' implied a nurse or carer attending to their every need but where was the glass of Moomoo Milk she had ordered over an hour ago? There was no care going on in this place.

Needless to say, Ivysaur wasn't enjoying her time in Day Care. She sat in the corner of the brightly coloured play area and sulked while her teammates socialised with other Pokémon and in Happy's case, flew around the room wildly. He was an energetic young Swablu whose impulsive manner regularly grated on Ivysaur's nerves. She glared at him enthusiastically, though he didn't notice. The room was so full of noise it was impossible to notice small things like that. Pokémon were laughing, trading interesting anecdotes and flirting so that the room was alive with commotion.

Ivysaur cast a sour look at the girl who was supposed to be manning the station while her parents were away for the week on a second honeymoon. Joan was a teenage girl with bushy coffee coloured hair and wore large vintage glasses on her pimpled face. She was leaning over the counter, talking on the phone to her boyfriend in the next town and playing idly with the star-shaped golden pendant she constantly wore around her neck.

Joan felt Ivysaur's eyes on her, looked up and winked at her before turning her back on the Pokémon to continue her conversation. Put-out, Ivysaur took solace in that Andy would be back in a week's time to rescue them from this hell-hole. Why he had to go to a summer camp that had no facilities for extra Pokémon, Ivysaur didn't know.

After a while, a Sandshrew named Terra sidled up to Ivysaur and asked why she didn't want to join in the fun. Ivysaur shot her a withering look. Ivysaur had known Terra ever since she had been captured by Andy five years ago but they had been separated for almost two years as Terra and Andy's other Pokémon had been stolen by an evil organisation. At the mercy of the criminals, Terra and the others had been tortured and tested on. The goons carrying out the experiments hadn't been particularly gentle and killed many Pokémon – Andy's Krabby and Rattata were just two of hundreds who didn't make it out alive.

Luckily, a bandit couple changed sides and returned Terra and Andy's Psyduck to him not long ago. Sensing a rift had been created in the bond he shared with his Pokémon, Andy thought giving them nicknames would help close it a little. That was how Terra had earned her name and Psyduck his: Arius. Andy had also offered to give Ivysaur a nickname but she refused to answer to anything other than Ivysaur. She thought nicknames were beneath her, especially as Andy seemed only capable of coming up with names that were slick with cuteness like Heather and Blossom.

Rolling her eyes good-naturedly, Terra backed off and immersed herself in a conversation with a Geodude called Graziella. Across the room, Ivysaur spotted Arius who was clutching his large yellow head as usual while a Vulpix chatted to him excitedly. For a moment, Ivysaur and Arius's eyes met and he smiled at her warily. Ivysaur looked away, back at Joan who was now talking to two adults in crisp navy suits. Curious, Ivysaur began to eavesdrop on their conversation.

"...unique markings. Belonged to your grandmother, you say?" one of them was saying. She was a short, portly woman with fair hair gathered into a tight bun. She was holding the pendant in one hand, examining it almost hungrily. It shone in the artificial lighting of the room, the blue chain it hung on paling in comparison. The portly woman's companion, a frail-looking man with thinning hair and a thick moustache, leaned in closer to hear Joan's reply.

"Y-es. She left it to me when she passed away. I remember her telling me she found it as a little girl, when the Millennium Comet went over her town. Actually," Joan broke off to give a small laugh, "she said it had fallen from the comet itself." The suited couple exchanged excited glances.

"Tell us, are you familiar with Jirachi?" the moustached man asked eagerly. Joan shrugged. The woman was still gazing at the pendant as if it was the most amazing thing she had seen in her life.

"Just what my grandma used to tell me. Jirachi grants wishes, right? And only appears every million years or something..." Joan was quickly losing interest in the conversation. These people had interrupted her phone call with her boyfriend and she was itching to call him back so she could hear his voice again. This long-distance relationship was taking its toll on her.

"Thousand years," the moustached man corrected her, "every thousand years." Joan muttered 'whatever'.

"This necklace could be a direct gift from Jirachi itself! It must be worth a fortune," the portly woman said, tearing up with the excitement of being so close to such a precious object. Ivysaur noticed a second woman listening to the conversation who did not look like she was with the navy suited adults. She was slender, in her late twenties with long toned legs. Her platinum blonde hair was cut in a pixie style and she had a piercing in her left eyebrow which gave her a slight edgy look. The mole on her left cheek stood out from her face – it was impossible not to notice it. Her azure eyes lit up at the mention of 'fortune'.

"A fortune?" repeated Joan. She looked impressed. "I just thought it was a little trinket of Gran's..."

"Well this 'trinket' must be stored in the proper facilities," started up the moustached man.

"We'll be happy to take it off your hands and make it available for viewing in our museum," the portly woman added. Joan appeared to be horrified at the thought.

"I couldn't! It was Gran's; she gave it to me. I couldn't give it away, even to a museum. Sorry." At this, the edgy woman left the building but the museum representatives continued trying to convince Joan to give them her necklace. Eventually they had to accept she wasn't going to give it up for anything – it meant too much to her. They left, disheartened and miserable. It made Ivysaur chuckle to see them so upset.

Much later when all the Pokémon had simmered down to sleep, Ivysaur was awakened by a noise. Her violet eyes surveyed the darkened room, trying to make out what it was. She heard another one that sounded like a footstep creaking on a floorboard. Ivysaur scrambled on to all four legs, fully awake and intensely alert. Next to her, Arius and Terra stirred.

"Wha..?" mumbled Arius loudly.

"Shh!" a voice said sharply. Ivysaur looked around and was surprised to see the Vulpix Arius had been talking to earlier. Because she didn't mix with the other Pokémon, Ivysaur didn't know who the Vulpix was but was grateful she had been able to quieten Arius.

The Vulpix created the smallest of flames in her mouth and the room was lit up by the tiny dancing flames. Shadows of the sleeping Pokémon's forms flittered on the walls and ceiling, the angles changing as the Vulpix walked towards the sound. Ivysaur followed cautiously, her heart hammering against her chest from the tension of the situation. She was both thrilled and scared. Not wanting to be left behind, Arius and Terra trailed after Ivysaur in a lazy way as if they were both still half asleep. Shaking her head at them, Ivysaur crept behind Vulpix closely, watching out for any sign of danger. She got her vines out, readying them to strike at a moment's notice.

The four of them found themselves standing in front of the front desk, clear of anything aside from a cash register and rota sheet. Joan had long since retired to her bedroom upstairs, leaving the Pokémon alone downstairs. Ivysaur shivered suddenly as a gust of wind breezed past her. Was a window open somewhere?

The rapid fluttering of wings was the only warning they got to announce Happy's decent from his overhead perch. He opened his beak to ask what was going on when a shriek from upstairs caused them all to jump.

"Stop, thief!" It was Joan. There was a thud followed by a tumble, a dark figure sprinted downstairs and ended right in front of the five Pokémon. They were wearing an all black cat suit with a ninja-like mask covering her face but even so it was easy to tell they were a woman. Joan's special necklace was clutched in her hands tightly.

In a flash, the Vulpix was after her and the woman fled. She dived expertly through the narrow opening in the nearest window (so someone _had_ opened one) and the Vulpix gave chase, jumping out the window with no hesitation. Without thinking Ivysaur did the same; Terra and Arius quickly followed suit and Happy flew after them all, not wanting to be left out. The hunt had begun.


	2. Confrontation

Confrontation

Ivysaur found it difficult to keep up with the Vulpix. The pink flower bud weighed her down, making it hard for her to run as fast as she needed to. The night was dark, the moon hidden behind a flurry of thick clouds and this only made the pursuit more complicated. Ivysaur could hear the ragged breathing of Arius and Terra close behind her and knew she wasn't the only one struggling to keep up. Happy's wings could be heard flapping softly above them all; he seemed to be the only one who wasn't using great effort to move but even so was obviously not tired. Ivysaur envied him.

The Vulpix's agile form routinely disappeared from Ivysaur's line of vision only to remerge moments later. It worried Ivysaur every time she couldn't see the Vulpix, as she was clearly still on the thief's trail as she hadn't yet given up on the chase. They raced across the grass plains; Ivysaur almost tripped down a flight of stairs carved into the rock she hadn't noticed until the last minute. She jumped down them, her heart beating erratically and spotted the Vulpix a few yards ahead of her. The female thief was still running.

A scuffling noise and a cry of 'argh' told Ivysaur that Arius had fallen down the stairs. Happy swooped down low to help him up and Terra landed on top of both of them. Hoping they would recover fast enough to not lose sight of her, Ivysaur carried on with her chase. There was a small ledge to get past next; the thief and the Vulpix had no problem with it so Ivysaur braved it, too.

They were on a path now, which made running a lot easier. Terra and Arius caught up with Ivysaur and ran either side of her, Happy flying above them. They all saw the moment when the Vulpix attacked the thief. She sprang forward, baring her teeth and bit into her leg. Crying out in pain, the thief kicked her leg so the Vulpix went flying; she landed on all fours and growled threateningly, ready to strike again. The thief was prepared.

She dug a single Pokéball out from a black belt bag around her waist and released her Pokémon, before stuffing the necklace inside the bag with a sinister smile. At this point Ivysaur had come to her senses and was beginning to question why she had ever left Day Care in the first place. She didn't know this Vulpix and the stolen necklace was nothing to do with her. She wanted nothing more than to turn around and go back to Day Care, forgetting this night had ever happened. But that was now impossible. She and the others were now caught up in this, whether they liked it or not.

The Pokémon the thief had released had pale tan fur, its ears rimmed with black. Its fluid tail ended in a curl. The Pokémon brought out and retracted its claws repeatedly as it glared at its opposition. Sharp teeth could be seen glinting in its mouth.

The thief had released a Persian. She pulled her mask off and Ivysaur saw it was the same moley woman who had been listening to Joan's conversation earlier. She directed the Persian to attack with Toxic and she obeyed, hitting the Vulpix directly. It was an unexpected move for a Persian to have but not totally impossible. The Vulpix felt the poison instantly; it burned fiercely and made her wince in pain. Shaking slightly on her legs, the Vulpix hit back with Flame Burst which burnt the Persian in the face. Angered, the Persian looked to her owner for the next instruction and gladly struck the Vulpix with Bite. The Vulpix fell to the floor and it was a while before she got up again. The Toxic was taking its toll on her body, the poison increasing with every movement she made and weakening her.

"We have to do something!" Arius squeaked. Ivysaur glanced at him from the corner of her eye. He wanted to help the Vulpix while all she wanted was her bed. How could two Pokémon on the same team be so different?

Taking Arius's exclamation seriously, Happy lunged down and used Peck on the unsuspecting Persian. Though it didn't do much damage, it did have the effect of distracting both the Pokémon and her owner. Peering into the darkness, the thief realised for the first time the Vulpix was not alone. Her lip curled in displeasure.

Deciding to help out the cause, Terra stepped forward and used Rollout on the Persian five times, her sand-coloured hide hitting the Persian harder each time. As this was going on, Ivysaur crept closer to the thief, her vines out and hovering in the air. She knew she had to come to their aid or they would be in this situation all night. With the thief concentrating on getting her Persian to strike Terra back, Ivysaur was able to open her bag with her vines and slip them inside to take the necklace. After a moment rummaging inside during which the thief remained oblivious, Ivysaur successfully grabbed hold of the necklace and pulled it out.

"I've got the necklace!" she announced triumphantly. All eyes were suddenly on Ivysaur. Her heart sank as she realised how loud she had been; a quieter approach would have been better. There was a tense moment in which no-one moved. Then,

"No-one steals from Katerina and gets away with it. Persian, get it with Slash and don't you dare miss!" the thief hollered.

Ivysaur again didn't think about running, she merely did it. She had to find an escape before the Persian hit her with Slash. Her eyes darted around the clearing wildly, looking for a way out. If only it wasn't so dark, she would be able to see...Katerina seemed to be blocking off an opening to the next city, which was unfortunate...Why was it so dark?

And then, as if the clouds themselves had heard Ivysaur's panicked thoughts, they cleared up, leaving the full moon to illuminate the world far below and effectively shed some light on the scene. Bathed in the silvery light from the moon, Ivysaur was able to get a clear look at Route 5 for the first time. To one side was the ledge she had jumped down from and beyond that, Day Care. That way was no use: the ledge was too high to go up again. Her other side was blocked by malicious Katerina and her evil-looking Persian. Behind Ivysaur was a building with no lights on, so it was probably locked. In front of her were thick trees, lined by a tall white picket fence. It was her only hope.

With the Persian hot on her heels, Ivysaur made a mad dash for the fence. Her short sturdy legs made powerful leaps as she ran for it, the necklace still clutched in her vines. Ivysaur was getting closer to the fence, she was almost there now, just a few more paces and she would be safe.

At last, Ivysaur reached the fence and saw the gaps between each plank of wood weren't as far apart as she would have liked. Closing her eyes and hoping for the best, Ivysaur threw herself at the fence regardless.

Her body scraped along the wood painfully (it was a tight fit) but she managed to get through. However, Ivysaur could still hear the Persian coming after her. What if her pursuer was able to get through the gap, too? Ivysaur would be a goner. She kept her eyes closed and waited for the pain to hit her.

The pain didn't hit her. Not the one she was expecting, anyway. The pain Ivysaur felt was less like sharp claws ripping into her body with the move Slash and more like three Pokémon falling on top of her after squeezing through the gap in the fence. Happy flew over the fence proudly and landed on the branch of a tree close to them, busily grooming his cotton-like wings as if there wasn't danger lurking nearby. Ivysaur barely had time to register that she was safe when she heard something that made her shiver.

Katerina was angrily forcing her Persian towards the fence, yelling at her to go after the Pokémon. The Persian was evidently reluctant but after much persuasion from her owner – and a swift kick in the ribs – the Persian obeyed. It shoved its head through the gap in the fence and snapped at the Pokémon while trying to push past it into the forest.

"Come on you stupid cat, get them! I want that necklace!" Katerina's voice rang out from the other side of the fence. Frightened, the Pokémon scrambled away from the fence, got to their feet and sprinted away from it, Happy following them lazily from the air. They had run a great distance and could no longer hear the Persian or Katerina, so stopped. Ivysaur hadn't realised she had been running in front of the Vulpix, who crashed into her when Ivysaur stopped moving so suddenly. The two Pokémon fell in a heap on the ground for the second time.

Ivysaur glared at the Vulpix, whose smiling chocolate eyes were enough to irritate her. The Vulpix's orange fringe was longer than it needed to be and fell in front of her face in an endearing sort of manner. Ivysaur immediately despised her.

"Hi," said the Vulpix. "I'm Pumpkin!"

* * *

><p><strong>Note: Both Katerina and her Persian belong to <em>xPikachu-Princessx<em>**


	3. Sticky Situations

Sticky Situations

Once Terra had convinced Ivysaur not to attack Pumpkin they set off to find some berries. Pumpkin was growing weaker every minute from the Toxic and her steps became increasingly shaky. By the time they found a Pecha berry bush, Pumpkin was practically being carried by Terra. Pumpkin ate the berries quickly and ravenously; her poison healed in an instant though she was still weak. She smiled around at the Pokémon who had chased after her from Day Care and thanked them for their help.

"You really were determined to get that necklace back, weren't you?" said Terra. Pumpkin nodded.

"It belongs to my owner and it's her most prized possession," Pumpkin replied. Ivysaur put two and two together and was able to come up with four: Pumpkin was Joan's Pokémon. That was why she had been so focused on retrieving the necklace from the thief. Ivysaur wondered if she would have done the same if a thief stole the thing her trainer treasured the most. Somehow, she didn't think so as what Andy seemed to care about above all his possessions was an old grey hat he wore no matter what.

"Can we find somewhere to stay the night?" Arius asked in a quivering voice. His eyes were darting around the thick forest uneasily; strange wild Pokémon eyes were visibly staring at them in the darkness. He was understandably nervous. They were all weary from their night-time exploit and a lack of sleep wouldn't help them defeat aggressive wild Pokémon. Avoiding a battle would be wise.

Ivysaur wanted to travel back to Route 5 and go back to Day Care to spend the night but the others were against it. For one thing, Katerina and her Persian might still be there and they didn't think they could escape them a second time. For another thing, they had become hopelessly lost. None of them had any idea which way they had come from, or even possessed the faintest idea about where they were. As a result, it was decided they would find a soft patch of grass to settle down in for the night and figure out where they needed to go in the morning when daylight and friendlier Pokémon could aid their task.

Happy flew up a tree so he could sleep perched on a branch but the others huddled up together on the ground below. The grass was cold and considerably less soft than they would have preferred but they didn't have many options. The temperature of the air was beginning to drop and all the Pokémon felt it; they shuffled closer together so their combined body heat could warm them all a little.

Arius lay alongside a curled up Terra but Pumpkin squeezed herself in between the two of them eagerly. Ivysaur didn't want her personal space invaded by the other Pokémon. She lay in the grass, a little way away from her teammates and Pumpkin, shooting them one last disapproving glance before closing her eyes and dropping off to sleep within minutes. By the sound of his snoring, Happy was the next Pokémon to fall asleep and Terra was quick to follow. Arius and Pumpkin were the only ones awake.

Pumpkin turned her head and grinned at Arius. His big eyes were clearly visible in the moonlit forest and Pumpkin gazed into them dreamily before snapping herself out of it.

"So tell me about your self," said Pumpkin, purring in an unnatural manner. Arius's cheeks became pink, though thankfully Pumpkin couldn't tell in the dark.

"Wh-what do you want to know?" Arius stammered nervously.

"Well Arius," Pumpkin thought about it quickly. "What kind of a name is 'Arius', anyway?" She hadn't meant to come across as mean and though her tone hadn't been sharp, her question came out as blunt as a butter knife. Arius mentally flinched as though she had hit him.

"It's short for Aquarius. 'Cause I'm a water Pokémon," he mumbled.

"Ohhh, I get it!" Pumpkin said enthusiastically. Then, since it didn't seem as if he was going to ask, Pumpkin went on. "I'm called Pumpkin because of my colouring. See?"

Arius nodded, yawning quite obviously. Pumpkin barely noticed. She babbled on about herself, encouraged by the occasional 'ah' and 'oh yes' responses Arius was able to muster, until he fell into a sleep so deep he couldn't even sleep talk. It was ten minutes before Pumpkin realised he had fallen asleep and fifteen minutes before she gave up trying to wake him. Pumpkin looked around the dark forest, shivered once – from either the cold or fear – and fell asleep herself.

After a night of endless talking, Pumpkin unbelievably still had the energy of ten men. She woke bright and early the next morning and immediately discovered that Ivysaur had been awake for half an hour before her, found some berries and helped herself without thinking to bring any for the others. The two females regarded each other in a stony silence until the others woke up.

Happy flew off to find something for him self to eat and brought back a beakful of Leppa berries – which accumulated to about one and a half. The small red and yellow berries were hard but nevertheless tasty; however Pumpkin readily gave the one Happy offered her to Arius. Terra bit into her half feeling hard done by: Leppa berries were her favourite and to only be presented with half of one was little more than torture, especially when another Pokémon so willingly gave a whole one away.

With the Leppa berries swallowed it was decided they travel as a group to find a decent breakfast and Ivysaur took the lead automatically, leading them to the bush of Oran berries she had previously discovered. While those who hadn't already eaten breakfast did so, Happy voiced an important question.

"Who has the necklace?" Pumpkin's half-eaten Oran berry dropped from her mouth as a cold feeling of dread over took her. The five Pokémon's universally blank stares told them that none of them had thought about it since last night. They had been far too focused on feeding themselves to worry about a necklace they had risked their lives to retrieve hours ago.

Their stares slowly settled on Ivysaur, who had been holding the necklace in her vines ever since she had stolen it from Katerina's bag. They waited for some sort of answer from her. Ivysaur hissed something that sounded suspiciously like swearing before racing off to the place they had spent the night: she had obviously left it behind. The others followed.

It didn't take long to find their sleeping place because they hadn't travelled far from it in their search for breakfast. The necklace was lying in the grass, glittering in the morning sunlight that streamed in through the gaps in the tightly packed trees. Just as they were all about to share a unanimous sigh of relief, a Meowth appeared on the scene. Its eyes were drawn to the shiny necklace and before anyone could do anything, it grabbed it in its mouth and scuttled away.

There was not time to think as they raced after the Meowth. It wasn't easy to follow: the wild Meowth knew the forest far better than the tame Pokémon and therefore knew when to jump over tree roots, when to duck under branches and when to disappear from view entirely. The five Pokémon stopped abruptly, not knowing which direction they should go in. Above the noise of the native wild Pokémon calls, all that could be heard was the sound of their laboured breathing as they fought to get their breath back.

Happy, who had been flying low over them, dropped to the ground with a thud. He was exhausted and expressed as much. He wasn't used to flying for this long – ever since he had hatched he had been either carried in someone's arms or travelled inside his Pokéball. Vigorous flight was not what his fluffy wings had been made for.

Pumpkin looked like she was near tears at having lost the necklace and Terra put her arms around her comfortingly, frowning at Ivysaur in a way that said sarcastically Terra hoped she was happy. Ivysaur glared back at Terra but knew that she had every right to be mad at her. It _was_ her fault the Meowth had made off with the necklace; she had been the last person with it. At that moment, the necklace had been her responsibility.

Ivysaur looked around them, searching for any Pokémon that might be able to tell them which way the Meowth went. At last she spotted two Pikachu curled up in a patch of tall grass. As Ivysaur approached them, the two Pikachu's facial expressions twisted into matching sneers and static sparked to life on all four cheeks.

"Did you come here for a fight?" one of them asked menacingly.

"Because you picked the wrong Pikachu to mess with," the other added, growling for effect. Ivysaur wondered what they were talking about but a quick look over her shoulder explained everything. Terra, Pumpkin, Arius and Happy had noticed her walking off and had followed her, Happy riding on Pumpkin's back. In a group as they were, Ivysaur supposed they could have looked intimidating.

Without warning, the two Pikachu held hands and shot a huge surge of electricity at all five Pokémon using their ThunderShock attack. Terra wasn't affected, Ivysaur didn't really feel it and Pumpkin managed to jump out of the way in time leaving her and Happy unscathed – but it was super effective on Arius, a Water-type, who cried out in agony. The Pikachu bullies saw this success and high-fived each other gleefully.

Ivysaur didn't like their smug attitude and while Terra was cooing over her injured friend, vengefully used Vine Whip on both Pikachu, whacking them right on their foreheads. One was instantly knocked unconscious and the other badly injured.

Ivysaur then brought her focus on Arius, whose injuries weren't that severe on closer inspection. He had overreacted because he hadn't been expecting the attack. Relieved Arius was going to be fine everyone's attention was then brought back to the remaining Pikachu. Ivysaur demanded to know where the Meowth was without considering that the Pikachu might not actually know. Luckily for them all it did know, and pointed them in the direction of the Meowth's horde before promptly passing out.


	4. Swarmed

Swarmed

The journey to the Meowth's horde was not eventful and the five Pokémon sneaking around was entirely unnecessary. However when they did arrive at the place in which the thieving Pokémon lay, they were glad of their stealthy manoeuvres as it did not wake the sleeping Meowth. Evidently content with a good day's work, it had gone down for a well-deserved nap. It was lying on top of its horde and Ivysaur couldn't help wondering how comfortable that was, since it seemed to consist of a lot of metal bottle caps, bits of glass and the odd coin. The necklace could clearly be seen on the top of the pile, one of the five tips hidden under the Meowth's chin.

Ivysaur turned to the others and began to outline a plan to retrieve the necklace. Arius, Happy and Terra listened earnestly, nodding in all the right places while Ivysaur went into detail about who was to play which part in the rescue mission. While this was going on, Pumpkin put on her game face, waltzed up to the Meowth's horde and slid the necklace out from under it as easy as pie. She then folded the chain in two and slipped it over her head so she could carry it herself.

Pumpkin went back to the others triumphantly and they stared at her in awe. Ivysaur glared at her for ruining her strategy so effectively. Ivysaur had put a lot of thought into her plan but it had been for nothing. Unfortunately, there wasn't any time to dwell on this as the general feeling was they should get out of the vicinity before the Meowth woke up and realised something was missing.

They had travelled far enough from the Meowth's horde to relax and Arius complimented on Pumpkin for her swift retrieval of the necklace. Happy, who was still hitching a ride on the back of Terra, agreed with this sentiment wholeheartedly and seemed to be impressed with the way Pumpkin had executed her task. Pumpkin remained modest, though Arius's compliments did bring a delighted smile to her face.

"I'm sure your plan would have worked just as well," Terra said to Ivysaur consolingly. Ivysaur didn't say anything; she felt humiliated. How could this Vulpix swan in and do what she had been planning, without the careful consideration needed for such a risky operation? Pumpkin's success irritated Ivysaur to no end and she regressed into a mood much blacker than her usual. It didn't help that the others insisted on going on about how amazing Pumpkin had been and the Fire-type began to glow with pride. It made Ivysaur sick. She trailed behind the group miserably though they didn't seem to notice her fading away.

The others began to talk cheerfully among themselves, joking around and generally sharing a good vibe as they walked. It didn't matter to any of them that they had no idea where they were going as they were having such a good time. Pumpkin had an infectious energy so it was nearly impossible for the other Pokémon not to feel as upbeat as her. They all came to the mutual yet optimistic agreement that they would find their way back to Day Care eventually. Being cooped up in the building had made them restless; a little adventure would be welcome to them.

Not long after it began to rain dreadfully, thunder booming in their ears and lightning flashing every so often. It was a harsh rain storm.

"Let's stop and ask for directions."

"No. I know where we're going."

"How can you? We're LOST!"

"Don't shout at me!"

"Don't shove me!" Arius, Terra and Ivysaur couldn't stop bickering like children. The five Pokémon had been walking for ages in the rain and tensions were running high. They finally decided to seek shelter when they were soaked through and sneezing, huddling together in a nearby cave. They waited for the rain to let up before venturing out of the cave – and that took a long time.

When they left the cave, the Pokémon had no idea where they were and they were still damp. The grass was long, wild and wet from the recent torrential rain. Happy was frightened as the dark clouds hadn't cleared entirely and so it was difficult to see what was lurking in the forest, though he was grateful to be on Pumpkin's back as it gave him some comfort knowing a friend was close.

The others were still squabbling with each other and had started attacking one another. Arius was using Scratch on Terra, who used Sand Attack on Ivysaur – whose Vine Whip attack was snapping at Arius's round head. Pumpkin got in the middle of them and pushed them apart. They all looked at her in surprise.

"I'm going to ask someone where we are," Pumpkin informed them firmly.

"There isn't anyone around," Ivysaur said doubtfully. Pumpkin beamed triumphantly.

"Are you telling me that isn't a Beedrill coming towards us?" Ivysaur said nothing but gave her a sour look for being correct. She too could see the Beedrill as it closed in on them. They stopped moving as they waited for it to approach them but a funny thing happened. The Beedrill multiplied. First there was one, then two, then four, eight, sixteen... There was an entire swarm of them surrounding the unsuspecting Pokémon.

"We're trapped!" Happy squawked and the other Pokémon realised what was happening. They were being targeted by the Beedrill; they had probably intruded the colony without noticing. The Beedrill's red eyes looked unmistakably angry and their wings were buzzing furiously. They appeared to be rearing their stingers for a group attack. The five travelling Pokémon unconsciously huddled together, eyeing the Beedrill with warranted nervousness.

"What's the plan?" Arius asked in a tiny voice.

"Everybody runs!" yelled Ivysaur as she ducked under the closest Beedrill to her. She knew the odds were not in their favour and thought the best plan of action was to get away safely, avoiding any and all casualties. Happy jumped up from Pumpkin's back and flew high above them all while keeping a close eye on where Ivysaur was going so he could follow her. A Beedrill made a dive for Pumpkin but she got in there first with a Flame Burst, knocking the Bug-type back as well as another who was hovering too close.

One Beedrill shot a Twineedle at Arius who froze up in panic – lucky for him Pumpkin saw this and shoved him out of the way of the attack. Terra attempted to use Swift and was encouraged by the retreat it earned from a couple of the Beedrill until they simply dodged around the attack and whizzed towards her for a counter. Terra realised her mistake and took the same route as Ivysaur, fleeing the scene at the first chance she got.

Now there was only Arius and Pumpkin who were trapped in the middle of the highly irritated Beedrill. The wild Pokémon seemed to be growing angrier and used Focus Energy in preparation for landing the final blow. Arius grabbed hold of Pumpkin in his fear, believing there was no hope left for them. He hadn't pictured his end to be quite so violent but he was powerless to do anything about it.

When Pumpkin fearlessly used Inferno on a vast number of Beedrill, Arius was reminded that he too could attack the opposing Pokémon and he felt like an idiot for not thinking of it before. He aided Pumpkin with Water Pulse and together the two of them wiped out the majority of the Beedrill swarm. Arius could hardly believe what was happening and was surprised they seemed to be fairly weak.

By the time the remaining Beedrill took in that their number was decreasing it was too late to form a strike against the Vulpix and Psyduck: they were fighting a losing battle. The few Beedrill still conscious decided to flee the battle, grumbling to themselves and each other about their humiliating loss.

In contrast, Pumpkin and Arius were feeling elated at having warded off a whole swarm of Beedrill by themselves. Grinning at each other, they complimented one another on their moves and Arius thanked Pumpkin repeatedly for saving him. Having already received great praise that day, Pumpkin's ego inflated considerably and she felt lifted. Not even the news that they were completely alone could dampen her spirits. So what if Ivysaur, Terra and Happy had disappeared? They would come back.

After an hour of waiting for the other three Pokémon to return, Arius managed to convince Pumpkin that they weren't coming back. They had probably run off and gotten themselves lost – well, more lost than they already were. It would be better if Arius and Pumpkin searched for them rather than staying where they were as the chances the others would come back to that spot were unlikely. Plus, staying in the same location would be risky considering the Beedrill they had just fought.

For the moment, it was just going to be Pumpkin and Arius travelling through the forest alone. Arius wouldn't have minded so much if Pumpkin hadn't gotten so excited by the prospect of being alone in the forest with him. She made Arius nervous.


	5. Askew Feelings

Askew Feelings

A pack of about ten Pidgey was docilely pecking at the ground, fluttering their wings occasionally. Their part of Viridian Forest was relatively calm, the level of tranquillity high. Not many trainers ventured into the thickest, most treacherous centre of the forest which was why the Pidgey liked it so much. It was their safe haven. They were comfortable there; confident in the knowledge they would not be disturbed.

"RAAAAWWWWRRRRR!" hollered Pumpkin at the top of her voice as she thundered into the clearing. The Pidgey took flight at once, flapping fiercely to get out of harms way as soon as possible. Pumpkin collapsed on the ground, laughing her head off. Arius was seeing her in a new light; she was incredibly childish, impulsive and didn't behave like a Pokémon who was on the run should, in Arius's opinion.

They had been wandering the forest together for hours, hoping to catch a glimpse of the others with no success. Arius's fears and nerves had worn away after the first couple of hours when nothing major happened to them, save for roaming deeper into the depths of the forest.

Once Pumpkin had calmed down enough, she announced they should rest to regain their strength and continue walking in a little while. There was also a berry bush nearby, so they could have a small bite to eat too. Arius was grateful for the stop as he had become quite tired though he didn't want to complain because there were only two of them. He knew their chances of survival would increase if they were in a bigger group and they could only achieve that when they found Ivysaur and the others. Arius felt awfully exposed with just Pumpkin for company.

"Is that necklace safe around your neck?" Arius asked, looking around nervously. "I mean, what if it falls off?"

"It will be fine, don't you worry," said Pumpkin with a smile. She swayed a little so the star-shaped pendant thudded against her chest.

"Are you sure? That Katerina woman seemed awfully ruthless. If she catches you with it..." Pumpkin giggled prettily.

"Arius you're so cute! I'm telling you, there's nothing to worry about." She moved closer to him, her smile widening as Arius's cheeks flushed red.

"Pumpkin, I don't think you should–" Arius began but Pumpkin stopped him.

"It's all right. I won't do anything reckless – for you. Has anyone ever told you how handsome you are?" Arius blushed even brighter but miraculously stood his ground, determined to get his point across to Pumpkin once and for all.

"Pumpkin, it's not that I don't like you it's just that I–" He was interrupted again but this time it wasn't by Pumpkin.

"Wow Carl, we've hit the jackpot: a Vulpix with a special necklace and a Psyduck. They're not even native to this forest! I know, remember my training. Weaken it, then throw the ball..." a young boy of about twelve said to his Weedle. Pumpkin and Arius stared at him. The boy was wearing a sun hat, carrying a net and what appeared to be a lunchbox. His scrawny legs were visibly shaking in his quarter-length shorts as he ordered his Weedle to attack using String Shot. Arius and Pumpkin exchanged glances. Did that kid honestly believe he could capture either of them? With _String Shot_?

Arius used Water Gun and the Weedle was instantly knocked out. The boy fled. Pumpkin turned to Arius, stars in her large eyes. She was impressed by the cool way Arius had dealt with the boy and his feeble Pokémon and expressed as much.

"Seeing you so confident like that; it was exhilarating. I thought you were cute before but now I see you also have a certain charisma. I like that in a Pokémon," said Pumpkin with a wink. Arius groaned quietly to himself. He was not enjoying his time in the forest one bit and wondered how the others – Terra, Ivysaur and Happy – were getting on.

Were they looking for them as hard as he and Pumpkin were? Were they worried? Or perhaps they were glad to be rid of him? Maybe Arius was just the thorn in their side they couldn't do anything about because he was part of their team. Happy was the baby, Terra was dependable and Ivysaur was clearly Andy's favourite, despite her ambivalent attitude towards him. Arius was just a spare part really and the team would be better off without him.

X

"ARIUS! ARIUUUUUS! I hope he isn't hurt. ARIUS! I feel so guilty, it's all my fault we got separated. Can anyone see him? ARIUS!"

Terra didn't know what to say as she and Happy trailed after Ivysaur who was yelling and rushing about the forest with little to hold her back. Ever since they realised they had gotten separated, Ivysaur had been beating herself up over it. Neither Terra nor Happy knew she could be capable of such strong emotions that weren't tied to anger and they were unsure of how to deal with Ivysaur as a result. They had been searching all day with no breaks and Happy had grown so tired he had resorted to piggy-backing on Terra.

Ivysaur raced on ahead of them, franticly searching bushes and tall grass, hoping to spot a glimpse of Arius's big yellow head. Her legs were screaming at her to rest and her throat had become sore hours ago but still she kept at it, unwilling to give up until Terra put a hand out in front of her. Ivysaur glared at her, barking for her to get out of the way so she could find Arius.

"You're not going to find him now, Ivy. It's already dark. We should find somewhere to spend the night; Happy's half asleep by now," Terra said gently. Head nodding, eyes closing, Happy was indeed almost asleep and Ivysaur couldn't ignore this. She was aware of the sense behind Terra's words but didn't want to quit looking for Arius. Ivysaur wanted to find him as soon as she could – but it was true what Terra had said about it being dark. The sun had set long ago and night had fallen, sending the wild day-Pokémon to sleep and bringing with it the eerie sounds of the nocturnal Pokémon, howling and screeching in the dark. Ivysaur knew just how scared Arius would be right then.

Concluding that there was nothing more they could do in such circumstances, Ivysaur agreed to find a place where they could spend the night. The clouds shifted and an annoying drizzle started up, not enough to soak anyone but enough for them to want to sleep somewhere dry. Plus, Terra was wary of them getting ill in the damp.

After a brief search, Ivysaur found a small opening at the bottom of a tree where they could spend the night. It was dry, would keep them relatively warm and no other Pokémon seemed to be using it. Happy was the first in; he gathered some leaves together and made three makeshift beds. Ivysaur went in next and commended Happy for making the 'beds'. Happy was surprised by her uncharacteristic compliment but put it down to the stress of the day. It was as the two of them were making themselves comfortable that they realised Terra had yet to enter the tree.

"What's wrong?" asked Happy as he and Ivysaur stared at Terra, standing alone in the light rain. Terra looked petrified, her eyes wide and her legs were visibly shaking.

"I c-can't go in there. Too small," she mumbled, edging away from it. "I won't go back! No!" She began to hyperventilate. Ivysaur was alarmed by Terra's behaviour: she always seemed so calm and level-headed. Why was she freaking out so much about having to sleep in a tree? Granted it would be a little cramped but there was really nothing to get worked up about.

It dawned on Ivysaur that part of the torture Terra had received while under the so-called care of the evil organisation included a few of the goons occasionally shoving Terra into a crate made for a much smaller Pokémon. Sometimes they didn't release her until days later, ignoring her strangled cries for help that went on even after Terra's voice grew hoarse and weak. The horrific experience had obviously traumatised the sensitive Sandshrew.

Ivysaur didn't know what it felt like to be deathly afraid of something. She realised she was privileged. Ivysaur knew she couldn't let Terra spend the night out in the open despite her claustrophobia – it wasn't safe. She might get picked up by a hapless trainer or worse, become another Pokémon's midnight snack. Ivysaur crawled out from the tree and went to Terra, putting her vines around her shoulders in what was meant to be a comforting way.

"Terra, come inside. Nothing will happen to you; I won't let it." Terra stared at Ivysaur, her eyes glistening with moisture.

"Promise?" she asked in a hollow voice.

"Of course."

Terra slept in the tree. It was an uneasy sleep, one she kept waking from in a cold sweat and she had nightmares – but she was doing it. She was overcoming her fear with her friends at either side.


	6. Discoveries

**Note: Its been a long time since I've updated this, so thanks for your patience!**

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><p><span>Discoveries<span>

They awoke early the next morning to resume searching for Arius and would have gone without breakfast if Ivysaur had gotten her way. Terra managed to convince her that they wouldn't be able to find an overweight Snorlax at an all-you-can-eat buffet let alone a Psyduck if they didn't keep their energy up with essential nutrients. From what little sun struggled through the narrow gaps in the thick trees, they could see that all signs of rain had passed and they could look forward to nothing but fine weather.

Ivysaur told Happy to fly as high as he could to see if he could spot Arius (and as an afterthought, Pumpkin) but the trees were packed too tightly together for him to see anything at ground level from the air and he came back disappointed. Terra sensed that as more time passed without them finding Arius, Ivysaur was growing more agitated by the loss and felt compelled to cheer her up. Terra hadn't forgotten Ivysaur's attempt at kindness last night and wanted to repay her though it wasn't easy.

Ivysaur scorned Terra for suggesting Arius's disappearance had affected her mood any more than usual and was expressively insulted at the implication that Ivysaur cared more than she let on for her team members. After getting thwacked on the head a few times with the stubborn Ivysaur's vines, Terra gave up trying to make Ivysaur feel better and resolved to put everything she had into finding Arius again. It seemed to be the only way Ivysaur would go back to her normal, disagreeable self and stop tormenting herself.

Ivysaur hadn't slept well at all. She had lain awake for most of the night, worrying about Arius. She couldn't stop blaming herself for what had happened and was haunted by memories of him. She had not once been friendly to him. Ivysaur could remember thousands of occasions where she had insulted Arius or hit him but she could not remember a single moment where she had shown him any affection. Regretting it bitterly now he was gone, Ivysaur was determined that when they found Arius she would make it up to him the best she could.

Flying above and ahead of Ivysaur and Terra, Happy spotted movement in front of their pathway and stopped on the branch of a nearby tree to observe. A sweet young girl in a white shirt and blue mini skirt was dancing around a clearing, teaching her male and female Nidoran a sequence of moves. She seemed harmless enough but Terra and Ivysaur were walking directly towards her and hadn't realised it and Happy thought he should warn them to be on their guard – just in case. He swooped down from his perch and relayed the information to his two remaining team mates.

"We don't have a fixed path so avoiding her won't make a difference," Terra said. Happy ruffled his wings and hopped closer to them, his youthful energy too high for him to merely stay still. Ivysaur looked at Terra so seriously it was almost a glare. The fact that it _wasn't_ actually a glare was worrying in itself, as glaring seemed to be one of Ivysaur's favourite pastimes.

"I suppose not. Which way shall we go?" said Ivysaur, resigned. Before they could decide on a direction however, the young girl saw them and approached them with glee.

"Now we can practise the technique I just taught you! Romeo, Juliet, make me proud," the young girl said to her two Nidoran. They evidently knew what to do because they immediately sprung into action; the female Nidoran – Juliet – raced over to her partner Romeo and for a moment, it looked like she was going to crash into him. At the last moment, Juliet jumped and rolled over Romeo's back, springing off him so that she was launched towards Terra.

Juliet raised one of her front legs and swiped at Terra as she sailed swiftly over her, executing a beautifully demonstrated Scratch attack. It grazed Terra's face, drawing a tiny amount of blood and Terra hissed. Whilst this was going on, Romeo was not motionless either. He moved his feet in time to music that was not playing – step, step, ball, change – and deftly moved towards the trunk of a tree, bouncing off it to hurl himself gracefully at Ivysaur, spinning as he went. It was amazing Romeo was able to land a Peck attack with such a spiralling speed but land it he did, causing an angry growl to emit from Ivysaur, vulnerable to Flying-type moves as she was.

The young girl clapped and cheered, glad her Nidoran had danced their moves perfectly. Happy hastily retreated to a low branch that was out of the way of Ivysaur's wrath. He could see a storm when it was brewing and didn't want to get caught in it. Surprisingly retaliation did not come from Ivysaur, though she was gearing herself up for one. Terra was the one who responded to the attacks with a renewed sense of pride and force.

Terra used Rollout to get closer to Romeo and Juliet quickly and before their trainer could form the words for an attack, employed Scratch on both their eyes, temporarily blinding them. While Juliet and Romeo fought to regain their sight, Terra first hit Romeo with Swift and then got Juliet with it. The Nidoran fell to the ground, knocked unconscious by the powerful special move and their young trainer girl burst into tears at the loss. She returned the Nidoran to their balls and darted away from the depressing scene.

"Wow, you really kicked butt," Happy exclaimed, coming down from the tree. Ivysaur smirked in agreement but Terra didn't say anything. Something strange was happening to her. A tingling sensation was coursing through her entire body and she felt as if her senses had heightened. Terra's body began to glow white and Happy and Ivysaur watched in amazement as a magnificent change overcame their friend. Groaning, gasping, Terra's limbs and body rapidly grew and she felt the sharp – but not unpleasant – pain of things growing all over her back.

When it was over, Terra was a different Pokémon. Her claws were longer and sharper, the pattern on her tough hide had smoothed out and darkened and it was now covered in dangerous-looking spikes. Terra had finally evolved into a Sandslash.

X

Meanwhile, Arius and Pumpkin were running for their lives. They sprinted as fast as they could, spurring themselves on despite the burning of their lungs that begged them to stop. They knew that if they stopped they would get caught by Katerina.

She had appeared out of nowhere and had evidently been following their trail for some time, her Persian stalking moodily at her side. Katerina had tracked them down like an expert hunter, following the mismatched footprints of the unlikely group of Pokémon through the forest, relying mainly on the instincts of her pampered Persian to stay on target.

After shoving her Persian through the fence, Katerina had jumped over it herself and they began walking in the direction Katerina had seen the Pokémon flee. Although it was night, Katerina hadn't let it deter her from her task and she moved through the darkened forest purposefully, not showing any signs of sleepiness. She allowed herself half an hour rest in the early hours of the morning however, as her Persian was stumbling and was almost dead on its feet. Katerina thought a quick power nap would be enough to recharge and she was correct. The two of them resumed the hunt feeling partly refreshed, though it was enough to keep them going.

When they came across a number of fainted Beedrills who had either been burned or drenched with fairly powerful moves, Katerina knew she was on the right track. Judging from the occasional twitching of the unconscious bugs, Katerina guessed the Pokémon she sought were not far off and she resumed her search with a renewed sense of urgency. She wanted that necklace back.

By the time night fell again, Katerina's Persian had fallen asleep in an instant and no matter how hard Katerina kicked her, would not wake up. Katerina was forced to stop pursuing the Pokémon and lay on the ground next to her exhausted Persian. The two of them endured a rough and dreamless sleep but it seemed to do them good, as the next morning they had regained even more energy than they had the previous day. They were able to increase the speed of their travel and as a result, stumbled across Pumpkin and Arius before noon.

Smirking with devious intent, Katerina nodded to her Persian once and she immediately knew what her trainer wanted. The Persian darted forward and made a clumsy swipe with her front paw at Pumpkin, who was still wearing the necklace. It was a mistake. Not used to fighting under such wild conditions, the Persian had misjudged her strike and Pumpkin saw it just in time. She jumped out of the way and with a yelp of alarm, began to run away with Arius at her side.

Arius was more afraid than Pumpkin was and he wasn't even guarding the necklace. He wasn't normally a particularly fast runner but the dread of what would happen to him if he was caught spurred him on and was more of a motivator than anything else. With every stride Pumpkin took, the star-shaped pendant thudding against her chest and reminded her constantly what she was risking everything for: her Joan, her trainer. Pumpkin loved Joan more than she could describe and would have done anything for her – putting her life in danger to protect her most valued possession from a lowlife crook was just one thing.

Pumpkin desperately hoped her efforts would be enough as she fought to stay out of the clutches of the cold-blooded Katerina and her submissive Persian.


	7. Reunion

Reunion

Ivysaur, Terra and Happy were walking through the forest, still trying to find Arius (and to a lesser extent, Pumpkin) when the two very Pokémon sprinted past them, screaming. The three stunned Pokémon barely had time to register what had just happened when Katerina and her Persian flashed by in hot pursuit. Without thinking twice about it, Ivysaur took off in the direction they were running with Terra and Happy following her lead. They refused to lose sight of Arius and Pumpkin for a second time.

Katerina was catching up to Pumpkin, who was slowing down now she was growing tired. Despite her exhaustion, Pumpkin urged herself to move faster, aware of the danger closing in. She could hear Katerina's breathing and imagined she could feel it on the back of her bristled fur. Katerina's arms were outstretched, her eyes triumphant as if she had already seized the necklace. This was going to be much easier than she had anticipated; she could see Pumpkin slowing down too.

Arius chanced a look behind and was aghast to see Katerina and her Persian narrowing the gap between them. They both had longer, more powerful legs than he and Pumpkin so it was probably inevitable that they couldn't outrun the two foes. Arius didn't look back long enough to see Ivysaur and the others and if he had, he might have decided on a different plan of action. However as it was, Arius believed he had no chance of rescue and was certain Katerina was going to grab Pumpkin any second.

So he stopped running.

This abrupt change of pace startled Pumpkin and she tripped over Arius. They landed in a tangle but were quick to right themselves. Katerina and her Persian were running too fast to slow down immediately and after a brief pause they halted and backed up swiftly.

Pumpkin was looking at Arius as if he was stupid; he couldn't possible expect them to get away now. Arius missed Pumpkin's betrayed expression though as he had readied himself to attack. His large eyes focused on Katerina and the Persian at her side, Arius let loose with the most powerful Water Pulse he had ever mustered and it struck the pursuers so hard they were knocked down.

Katerina was back on her feet quickly and kicked her Persian to get up as well. Glaring hate at Arius, Katerina ordered the Persian to counter with Toxic: the same move that had seriously weakened Pumpkin a few days ago. Arius dodged it sharply – Ivysaur saw him move and wondered when he had gotten so agile – and returned with Confusion. The Persian hissed bitterly, shaking its head wildly as if that would improve the clouding of its mind. Katerina watched her Pokémon flail around with seething fury and groaned to herself when it bashed its head painfully against the trunk of a tree.

Now caught up to everyone, Ivysaur snickered openly at the Persian while Terra and Happy were more discreet about their amusement. Their laughter alerted Pumpkin that they had more company and she was relieved they were there but Arius was too focused on his fight with the Persian to realise his friends had reappeared. His next move was one he hadn't done prior to this: Fury Swipes. Arius attacked the Persian viciously, swinging at her face and leaving behind deep red gashes.

Seeing her Pokémon was getting beaten badly by a lowly Psyduck, Katerina stepped forward with the intention of placing a well-aimed kick at Arius but Ivysaur saw what the female thief's intention was and slapped her warningly with one of her vines. The two glared at each other for a tense moment and Terra, Happy and Pumpkin brought themselves up to their full height, letting Katerina know that if she tried to hurt Ivysaur then she would have to face their wraths as well. Realising that for now she had been defeated, Katerina unwillingly returned her Persian back to its Pokéball and, after swearing she would not give up on the necklace, stalked off to find a vulnerable preteen trainer whom she could steal a few Potions off.

The five Pokémon waited a reasonable amount of time before relaxing, finally convinced Katerina wasn't going to return in a hurry. Happy wanted to greet Arius and Pumpkin immediately but Ivysaur warned him against it: they would be safer if they moved out of the area before becoming completely comfortable with the idea Katerina no longer posed a threat for the moment. Terra agreed that Ivysaur had a point and they quickly walked a few paces east where they stopped by a large hole in the ground, probably dug and abandoned by a wild Dugtrio.

"I'm so glad you're okay!" Happy squealed delightedly, flapping his fluffy wings in Arius's face to express his joy. Terra and Arius laughed at him fondly.

"You were so brave back there, Arius," said Pumpkin huskily. "You're officially my hero." Arius blushed and muttered a modest 'your welcome', his face glowing even brighter when Pumpkin kissed him quickly on the cheek.

"It's thanks to you Joan's necklace is still safe," said Pumpkin, clearly pleased. When Happy was finished bouncing around Arius, Terra threw her arms around Arius and hugged him tightly.

"You don't understand how worried we all were!" she whispered, grateful to have her friend back. Arius stared at the Sandslash in awe.

"Terra! You've evolved!" he exclaimed. Terra pulled away from him, laughing warmly.

"Looking for you made us all work harder than ever and it just kind of happened. Ivysaur probably worked the hardest trying to find you, though," said Terra, idly wondering if Ivysaur was going to hit her for that sly comment. Arius blinked.

"Where...Where _is_ Ivysaur?" They looked around. She seemed to have vanished.

"Oh no, don't tell me she's lost now?" Pumpkin said with what appeared to be genuine dismay. Arius thought that was strange as the two of them hadn't really hit it off and he suspected Ivysaur didn't like Pumpkin one bit. Happy flapped his wings in agitation but didn't have the energy to fly properly anymore. He was scared that Ivysaur truly was lost and Terra patted him consolingly. She didn't think Ivysaur was lost since it had been her who had led them to where they were now. Ivysaur had most likely slipped off while everyone was distracted and Terra doubted Ivysaur would have gone far. Pumpkin was about to declare the need for a search party when Ivysaur's voice called out lazily from nearby.

"I'm over here." Their heads swivelled around and they followed the sound of Ivysaur's voice. The four Pokémon were relieved and confused to see Ivysaur leisurely bathing in a patch of sunlight. Seeing there was no imminent danger, Terra enlisted Pumpkin's help to dig out the Duglet hole so they could have a decent resting place for the night and Happy hopped after them cheerily. Arius and Ivysaur were alone together and he asked her the only question that mattered at that moment.

"What on earth are you doing, Ivy?" Behind her closed eyelids, Ivysaur's eyes rolled and she ignored him. It was obvious what she was doing: she was soaking up the sun. Arius waddled closer to Ivysaur curiously.

"You know, Terra mentioned you were all really worried about me," he said. Ivysaur grunted in response. "You more so than her or Happy." Ivysaur opened one eye and watched Arius moodily.

"Did she now?" Ivysaur said, closing her eye again and shifting position on the ground so she was more comfortable. "How interesting." Arius frowned when he realised he wasn't going to get much – if anything – out of Ivysaur. Not when she was in this weirdly mellow but still grumpy mood. He sighed.

"Why don't you just admit you missed me so we can get back to normal?" Arius said. Ivysaur scoffed.

"How can we be normal when we're lost in the forest without our trainer and an ugly woman is chasing us for a prehistoric necklace that belonged to a teenage girl's dead grandma?" Arius cocked his head.

"Good point."

"I know." Arius's face clouded over. Silence reigned over the two Pokémon for a good while and Ivysaur thought Arius had given up and joined the others. She was wrong however; Arius was still standing by her side, waiting. Waiting for what, he didn't quite know yet. When it became clear that Ivysaur wasn't going to be the one to break the silence and speak first, Arius gave in.

"Not that it makes a difference, but I missed you. I missed all of you, actually. I kept wondering if you would even notice I was gone. I'm not a valued member of them team and I'm okay with that but I did worry you would – you would _all_ – replace me easily. It kind of stung to think I could be replaced by a Magikarp and it would probably be ten times better than me."

Ivysaur opened both her eyes and sat up, facing Arius sternly. One of her vines snaked out from under her pink bulb slowly and hovered in the air for a moment. Arius's eyes followed it as it swayed fluidly in the air, mesmerising him with its elegance. It reclined backwards unhurriedly and then without warning snapped forwards to smack Arius in the middle of his forehead. Clutching the quickly reddening spot and moaning 'ouch', Arius demanded to know what the reason for the blow was.

"You're an idiot, Arius. We rushed around this stupid forest trying to find you, hoping you were safe with that airhead Vulpix. Of_ course_ you're a valued member of our team, jeez. Who else could be more of a drama queen? Didn't you realise Katerina ran off after you single-handedly beat up her Persian? You're incredible, Arius, a real contender and if you only opened your abnormally massive eyes you'd see it just as clear as I do."

A lump had formed in Arius's throat. Ivysaur, amid all her backhanded compliments and subtle insults, had never said anything nicer to him in all the time they knew each other. The emotion was choking Arius up; Ivysaur could see it and it made her feel sick. He took a wary step forward and his arms rose just a little. Ivysaur knew what was going to happen. Arius was going to hug her. Her immediate reaction was to back off at once but something made her stay where she was. A hug from Arius, the big yellow softie; that couldn't be so bad, could it? Maybe it would be pleasant. Or maybe she would give in to her instincts and slap him in the face when it was over.

Ivysaur didn't get to find out what a hug from Arius would feel like then. That was because the Dugtrio that had burrowed the hole nearby was back and it had a friend.


	8. Attachment

**Note: I thought it would be best if I churned out a chapter before I left for China. That's right, China. I'm going to China on Friday! Only for seven days, with my school but come on, it's CHINA. Excitement does not describe my feelings. I just hope things go well with the flight. But you don't care about my life, do you? You're only here for the story. So go on, read. I won't interrupt you any more, promise :)**

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><p><span>Attachment<span>

"Can't we ever catch a break?" moaned Ivysaur, as she eyed the Dugtrio. Six pairs of eyes glared back. They didn't look friendly and seemed to be rearing for an attack. It felt like Ivysaur was just jumping from one needless battle to the next and she was beginning to miss the dullness of the day care centre. At least there she didn't have to fight every Pokémon who crossed her path. Out in the wilderness, it was fight or get beaten up and Ivysaur did not let herself get beaten up.

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves," Arius said, stepping forward with his short arms up. He too had had enough battles for one day. "I'm sure we can sort this out without resorting to a fight. Have we offended you in anyway?"

"You're ruining our tunnel!" the Dugtrio three said in unison. All six heads formed two separate orbs of energy which then became triangular spectrums. They gathered power for their Tri-Attacks and shot at Ivysaur and Arius with unrelenting force. Ivysaur was the first to recover from the attack and she focused her most powerful scowl at the Dugtrio.

"Didn't you hear my friend? He. Just. Wanted. To. Talk," she growled, summoning a Razor Leaf attack that sliced all six Dugtrio heads. They hissed in pain but didn't have time to react as Arius was already shooting a Water Pulse at them. The liquid hit them full-on and they cried out in agony, their pain mounting. They fought blindly, hitting out with Scratch and Sand-Attack but they were rash, aimless moves that failed to find any kind of living target. Ivysaur and Arius used the Dugtrio's desperation to their advantage, hitting them with Grass and Water moves alternatively as they were aware the Dugtrio were vulnerable against such moves.

The Dugtrio attempted to put up some sort of threatening fight but were no real match for the combined skills of Arius and Ivysaur. The two had been part of a team for nearly five years and although they had spent a considerable amount of that time apart, they knew each other well. It was with great fluidity and cooperation that they were able to put up such a great defence against the slowly withering Dugtrio.

When he could, Arius looked over at Ivysaur and smiled. She was furiously smacking the Dugtrio in the face with her sharp vines in that way she has mastered and it warmed Arius's heart to see Ivysaur in her element. He had to tear his gaze away from Ivysaur when the Dugtrio realised he wasn't paying close enough attention and managed to land a direct attack on him. Adjusting his mind back to the task at hand, Arius dove once more into the battle with little holding him back and he fought at Ivysaur's side with a renewed sense of purpose.

Ivysaur recognised the determination set in Arius's eyes – she had experienced it enough times herself – and felt a stirring of new-found respect for the bumbling Psyduck. The past few days in the forest had changed him quite a bit and Ivysaur was certain it could only be a good change. She was gradually becoming impressed by the big-headed yellow idiot and this battle with the Dugtrio was increasing the speed at which this process occurred.

Eventually, the Dugtrio were knocked unconscious and Ivysaur took the added precaution of flinging their limp forms far away from the place they planned to sleep for the night. With a nod of approval to Arius, Ivysaur wandered back to Terra and the other two in order to find out which part of the hole was the softest so she could reserve it for herself. Arius scampered after her eagerly and stopped her before she got to them. The two Pokémon were just outside the others' hearing range, on that weird fringe of space where they could be seen but not heard. Arius's face was split into a wide grin.

"Ivysaur!" he squeaked excitedly. "Didn't you realise what happened?"

Looking at him, Ivysaur noticed the change that had overcome her teammate. He no longer had his trademark vacant stare, stubby appearance or canary-yellow colouring. Rather, Arius was blue with a hydrodynamic shape and his eyes were smaller with red irises. There was a red sphere on his forehead, four spikes on his head and his limbs were elongated, displaying webbed claws. Arius was a Golduck.

It was only when Ivysaur realised she was seeing Arius from a higher perspective that it dawned on her that he wasn't the only one who had evolved.

"Arius," Ivysaur spoke quietly, "please tell me. Am I a Venusaur?" Arius nodded his head quickly and Ivysaur – _Venusaur_ – knew it to be the truth. She had reached her final form.

"Okay," Venusaur nodded to herself. "Okay." She didn't say anything for the rest of the evening.

After singing Venusaur and Arius's praises for evolving so unexpectedly – or was it so unexpected? They had been doing a lot of intense battles lately – the five Pokémon had settled down to sleep. They were all tired, having spent prolonged parts of the day either running or fighting. Happy had been the first to fall asleep and, after checking the necklace was around her neck about fifty times, Pumpkin soon followed suit. Terra was next and Venusaur, who was too big to huddle up with the others in the Dugrio hole, drifted off in a flattened area next to them all.

Unlike the others, Arius was bothered by the darkness, strange noises and disconcerting movements in the bushes. After his last couple of nights spent in the forest, he thought he would be over his fear of the unknown but he was wrong. Arius was just as afraid as ever, if not more so. He knew Katerina was out there somewhere and she would be livid at being beaten again. If she ever found them again, Arius didn't doubt she would bring a new level of hatred and brutality.

Arius continuously tossed and turned in the mud, his lengthened beak chattering in the night. His eyes darted nervously around the forest as he tried to spot what he thought was a creature of the night lurking there, waiting until he fell asleep before it pounced. Arius thought he heard a twig snap somewhere close and he shot up, sticking to Venusaur's side and used her huge leaves for cover, sweating with panic. He was sure something was glaring at him in the gap between two close trees and it did nothing to ease him.

A Pokémon screeched – it sounded like a Noctowl – and Arius gave a quiet yelp of surprise as the Noctowl sounded close. He jumped up and frantically climbed Venusaur's back with impressive speed. He managed to get to the top and sit down but once there, Arius realised how high he was. It was even more frightening than being on the ground. He began to squeal but cut him self off when it hit him the noise could attract predators. Arius covered his mouth with his hands and promptly toppled off Venusaur's back. His crash-landing would have been painful had he not been caught by her strong vines.

Venusaur carefully lowered Arius to the ground before surveying him with tired eyes. Seeing his shaken form, Venusaur sighed quietly to herself. Venusaur still had her vines wrapped around Arius's body and she pulled him closer to her so they were eye to eye.

"Nothing's going to harm you," Venusaur yawned. "Not while I'm around." If it had been anyone else, Arius would have questioned them. How could they be so sure their defences were so impenetrable? Because it was Venusaur however, Arius had faith in her words and nodded, convinced. Venusaur set him down and expected him to go back to the hole. She was surprised that Arius stayed where he was, staring at her.

"Why are you so upset about evolving?" Arius whispered, being careful not to wake up the others. Venusaur scrutinised him.

"Who said I was?" she asked defensively. Arius shrugged.

"No-one. I worked it out for myself."

"Well it's not true now shut up and go back to sleep," Venusaur muttered irritably.

"Not until you tell me why." Arius stood firm, determined to get the truth out of her. Venusaur stared angrily at him but then her face softened. Arius had known her for a long time and had never seen her look like this: vulnerable.

"I never wanted to be a Venusaur. Like this, I'm...I'm," Venusaur turned her head away from Arius, "ugly."

There was a moment of silence between them. But only a moment. In that moment, Pumpkin had snorted awake – the necklace had been digging into her for a while. Her bleary eyes zoned in on Arius standing in front of Venusaur and her ears twitched when she sensed the tension in the air. Pumpkin stayed as still as she possibly could to observe the exchange between Arius and Venusaur while hoping they didn't see she was awake.

"That's crazy talk. You're gorgeous!" said Arius, his cheeks glowing red. Venusaur stared at him with fire in her eyes.

"Shut up. Stop lying to me. I'm a hideous monster with warts all over my body. I am ugly, Arius," Venusaur spat, hating the conversation. But Arius was shaking his head.

"Venusaur, listen to me when I tell you that you're the most beautiful Pokémon I've ever laid eyes on. You're strong and confident and loyal and you could never be ugly," he said softly – but firmly. Like he meant every word. Venusaur's eyes gleamed while Pumpkin's heart broke. So _this_ was why Arius never responded to her flirting, why he insisted they should remain just friends. He had feelings for Venusaur. It made perfect sense but didn't make Pumpkin feel better about the situation. She didn't even think Venusaur deserved to be the object of Arius's affections. He was too kind and gentle for her. Pumpkin had not missed the way Venusaur took it upon herself to whack Arius on the head at least five times a day. How could he like a Pokémon so violent? It didn't make sense to Pumpkin.

"You mean it?" asked Venusaur, her heart thudding against her ribs. Arius smiled.

"You'd have to be an idiot to think otherwise," he said. Then they kissed.


	9. Let Me Go

Let Me Go

The next morning, Terra was the first to notice the clearing to the left of where they had been sleeping. She, being the first one awake, ventured towards the light and was bowled over to discover the path to Route 5. They had found it without even trying.

Terra had raced back to wake up the others, delighted to have found the way back. The rest of the group were a little groggy to begin with but once they realised how close they were to salvation, snapped into action. Of course, the mutual feeling was that nothing could really be done without a spot of breakfast and they fed off the fruit from a nearby Sitrus Berry bush. After stuffing their faces gratefully with the yellow hive-shaped fruits, all five Pokémon felt energised and prepared to go. They then started towards Route 5.

Pumpkin watched Venusaur and Arius carefully now she knew how they felt about each other. In the light of day, no-one would have guessed that they were overly fond of one another – they hid it well. They didn't walk apart, which would be an obvious tip that something was up, but they didn't walk particularly close either. If Pumpkin hadn't been looking for behaviour out of the ordinary, she would not have noticed the subtle difference in the two Pokémon. Every so often, Arius's hand would brush Venusaur's body or they would catch each others eye and a certain look would pass between them.

Terra and Happy noticed nothing, pacing towards their goal with their hearts lighter than they had been recently. They saw naught but Metapods for the most part and then suddenly, they were out of the forest. They could see the Day Care house ahead; the brilliant golden sun shining on it from behind them made it look like the most beautiful place in the world. The five Pokémon thought they were safe now and began to relax. And that was their biggest mistake of all.

Checking that the necklace was securely around her neck, Pumpkin scampered ahead of the group. She was eager to get back to Joan and spend some much needed bonding time with her trainer as it would help get her mind off Arius.

Terra had just told a joke and Happy and Arius were laughing at it, though Venusaur remained predictably aloof. Pumpkin felt as if their laughter echoed in her mind, mocking her as Katerina revealed herself from her hiding place behind a tree. Her hair was in clumps, her clothes torn in several places and there were smudges of dirt on her face. Despite these defects, a proud smile twisted its way on to her expression, stretching her mole across her face.

Pumpkin stopped in her tracks, stuck. Katerina was not alone. She was surrounded by six menacing-looking Pokémon, her glamorous Persian included. A Tyranitar stamped his feet to amp itself up, a Metagross rocked threateningly, a Pinsir snipped her claws, a Garchomp reared his head back and an Absol flicked her head with arrogant dominance.

Pumpkin didn't think they stood a chance.

"So," Katerina said in a low, ominous voice. "It all comes down to this." Venusaur took a step forward, her eyes narrowing.

"Indeed it does," she replied, though Katerina couldn't understand her.

Happy looked to Terra for assurance and saw she was getting into a fighting stance. Arius and Venusaur were standing together, glaring at Katerina and her ensemble of Pokémon. The connection between them both was now startlingly obvious but none of their friends had time to take notice. Pumpkin stood with her paws firmly on the ground, her head lowered and teeth bared. If she was going down, Pumpkin wanted to go down fighting.

Happy nervously shuffled forward and made the decision to stay and battle rather than fly away the first chance he got. He had witnessed his friends fending off wild Pokémon for a few days now and realised it was so they could survive and get home safely. It was about time he helped out – his young age was no longer a valid excuse for not doing so. They had all been through too much in a short space of time for it to be that way.

The battle was hectic and too fast for anyone to discern whose side was winning while it was going on. Happy was fretfully avoiding all of Pinsir's attacks, Pumpkin was clashing with Matagross, Venusaur was up against Garchomp, Arius and Tyranitar were going at it with hostile aggression and Terra had Absol to deal with. Katerina's Persian stalked around them, trying to get near Pumpkin so she could swipe the necklace like her trainer had instructed her to do. Scary Face on Confusion, Confusion on Inferno, Peck on Revenge, Taunt on Poison Sting, Dual Chop on Take Down. Limbs were everywhere, animosity directed against one another. Injuries ranged on a spectrum of mild to severe. A short encouragement to your comrade to get up and keep fighting before your attention was monopolised by your own opponent. It was too much and Katerina's side had the advantage of experience.

Until an error caught them off-guard: Tyranitar's Earthquake move.

The ground beneath their feet rumbled and shook violently, knocking the Pokémon around roughly. Only Happy had no cause to worry about the dangerous move, as he was a Flying-type and thus unaffected by it. However, the rest of his team were not. Forcing herself to stay sturdy on all four feet, Venusaur thought quickly and acted even faster. Using her vines she picked up Arius first, who was on his back already, and threw him adjacent to an over-hanging tree branch. Arius had enough sense left in him to grab hold of it for dear life. Venusaur threw Pumpkin and Terra up after him, and after a struggle they too were also able to cling on to the rough tree bark out of harm's way. Happy flew up and met his friends on the rescue bough.

"Venusaur, get up here as well!" Arius called to her desperately, hoping she could join them in the safety of the tree. But the branch was too far for Venusaur's vines to reach and she was far too bulky to climb. She stared up at her friends with a proud sadness in her eyes, glad they at least were safe. The necklace was still firmly around Pumpkin's neck and way out of Katerina's reach. Satisfied, Venusaur was swept up in the Earthquake like the other Pokémon. A thick cloud of dust rose from the moving earth, obscuring the Pokémon's view from the tree of what was going on down below. The air was filled with the crashing of the earth and Katerina's screams of defeat.

Then, it was silent, and the dust cleared. Garchomp, Metagross, Absol, Persian, Pinsir and Katerina were lying down, evidently unconscious. Tyranitar was still standing, his glazed expression telling of his loss at what to do. Katerina had trained him only to act when ordered and with her out for the count, he didn't know what to do with himself.

Arius's heart rose to his mouth when he saw Venusaur's limp body leaning against the foot of the stairs that led to the Day Care house. Her body had been tossed a long way. He clambered down the tree clumsily and rushed to her side. Pumpkin and Terra helped each other down from the tree much slower and Happy fluttered over to Arius and Venusaur with great trepidation. Arius had one hand on Venusaur's cheek and was gently stroking it. Her body was covered with scratches and bruises.

"She...saved us all," Pumpkin said, disbelief tainting her voice.

"She was so brave," squeaked Happy. Arius said nothing. He didn't look at any of them. Finally realising that there were more than just platonic feelings between Arius and Venusaur, Terra took over the situation. She ordered Pumpkin and Arius to help her carry Venusaur up the stairs – Happy was to fly ahead and try to get Joan to come outside and meet them along the way.

The short journey was painfully slow and tensely quiet. Arius was carrying Venusaur's front, Terra had her hind legs and Pumpkin was couriering Venusaur's middle on her back. None of them wanted to say it but Venusaur was heavier than they anticipated. By the time Joan saw them with Happy flying at her side, the three noble Pokémon were ready to keel over from exhaustion. Seeing this, Joan hurriedly returned Venusaur to her Pokéball – she had been holding all their balls on her person ever since she discovered they were missing.

Because she had to run the Day Care house, Joan hadn't been able to search for the missing Pokémon herself but she had alerted the local Officer Jenny to keep an eye out for them. Joan had been hoping they might turn up by themselves.

Pumpkin raced over to her owner who dropped to her knees and welcomed the Vulpix with open arms. Pumpkin snuggled into Joan's chest and Joan kissed the top of her head.

"Oh Pumpkin, I was so worried about you! Don't you ever disappear like that again," warned Joan fondly. She looked at the other Pokémon and gave a relieved smile. "I'm glad you all made it back in one piece. Who wants a nice long rest?"

Terra, Arius and Happy agreed: it felt nice to be taken care of again.

* * *

><p><strong>Note: The next chapter will be the last. I'm so glad I stuck with this instead of giving up on it...<strong>


	10. Epilogue  Aftermath

Epilogue – Aftermath

It pained Joan to know the thief had got away. The police force had combed the immediate area for any sign of the slippery woman but Katerina eluded them with deft skill. Joan didn't dwell on the criminal who had robbed her however as she had got her grandmother's precious necklace back and her darling Pumpkin was unharmed. As for the other Pokémon who had vanished with Pumpkin, Joan was relieved they too had returned as it wouldn't be good for business if she had lost them permanently. In fact, Joan decided not to tell their owner that there had ever been the slightest threat to his Pokémon's safety.

Pumpkin stood at Joan's feet loyally as she shook hands with the museum officials from days earlier. The moustached man and the portly woman were dressed in the same navy suits as before but this time, their expressions were one of pure delight.

"We're so glad you decided to donate the necklace to the museum," the moustached man said enthusiastically. He ran a hand that was shaking with excitement through his thinning grey hair and his co-worker agreed.

"It will be a wonderful addition to the new Jirachi exhibit we're opening in a few weeks," she added, her second chin wobbling animatedly.

"And it will be safe?" Joan double-checked as she broke off the handshake. The museum officials assured her it would be – she would be able to see her grandmother's necklace from behind a velvet rope that would be guarded round the clock by well-trained security members and the sparkling star-shaped pendant and chain would be protected by a bullet proof glass case.

Tears were in Joan's eyes as she watched the moustached man pack away her grandmother's necklace in a case made of industrial steel, reinforced with a number of impenetrable metals and locked twice – once with a key and again with a pin number. Yes it would be safe, but it wouldn't be Joan's anymore. It was a bittersweet end to the matter.

A little later Joan sat behind the front desk, her phone to her ear and Pumpkin on her lap. Joan was absently stroking the orange fur on Pumpkin's back and the soothed Vulpix watched with glazed interest the interactions between the Pokémon admitted to the Day Care house on the other side of the room.

Happy was engaged in a game of tag with a young Zubat, Terra was having a surprisingly stimulating conversation with a female Poliwhirl and Venusaur and Arius were huddled together in a corner, not saying a word to each other. It was a couple of days after they had kissed and they had told their other friends how they felt about one another. Or rather, Arius told them while Venusaur glared at them all, as if daring them to make a joke in bad taste. No-one did. They all seemed to be rather happy for the unlikely couple and even Pumpkin managed a weak smile. Terra seemed to have suspected both Pokémon harboured such feelings for each other all along and her smug attitude riled Venusaur until Happy and Arius told her to calm down. Terra meant well, after all.

The atmosphere surrounding Arius and Venusaur now was pleasantly content. They were glad to just be in each other's company, doing nothing. It was a whole sight better than rushing through the forest, desperate for a way out and worrying for their lives. They felt as if they had earned the right to relax so completely as this. If they didn't have to move for another few days then that would be all right with them. They were not in a hurry to be thrown back into another adventure so quickly.

A teenaged boy and young adult woman walked into the Day Care house. The boy was small and pale, with dark hair hidden beneath a grey beanie hat. His clothes were casual and understated but his nervously twitching hands suggested he was anything but calm. His brown eyes flickered around the room anxiously as he scanned the Pokémon in the back. The woman he was with was in her early twenties and from the ring on her left hand, it was clear she was married. She had creamy skin flushed with worry, jade coloured eyes and long dark hair that cascaded beautifully down her back. Her expression was soft and open, though she was biting her pink lips which suggested she was not completely at ease.

Joan hurriedly wrapped up her phone conversation so she could deal with her customers.

"Hi, my n-na-name is A-A-Andrew Alding-t-ton. I left my Pokémon he-here over a w-week ago?" the boy stammered to Joan. Joan swivelled around on her chair, typed in Andy's information on the computer and pressed enter. At once his details came up on the screen and Joan was certain this was not a fraud. She looked to her left at the Pokémon Andy had left in her possession and realised how different they looked from the Ivysaur, Sandshrew and Psyduck he had last seen.

Leaving Pumpkin on the front desk, Joan got up from her chair and collected Andy's four Pokémon. Andy's eyes bulged when he saw that, aside from Happy, his entire team had evolved. He looked back at Joan.

"How much does he owe you?" Andy's companion asked. Joan thought about it. Normally, the price would be pretty steep because of the evolution of the three Pokémon, not to mention the obvious growth in their strength. However, Joan was aware that these Pokémon had played some key role in ensuring the safety of her grandmother's necklace and were likely responsible for her darling Pumpkin's safe return also. It had not slipped her notice that they seemed to be good friends with Pumpkin, although Venusaur didn't seem to be good friends with anyone aside from Arius.

It was for that reason the Joan decided to charge Andy half the price. He was so distracted that he didn't even realise it. Pumpkin jumped down from the counter top to say goodbye to her friends. She rubbed her nose against Terra's face, licked Happy affectionately and nodded her head stiffly towards Arius and Venusaur.

"It was nice meeting you," Terra said with genuine feeling. Pumpkin smiled at her.

"Likewise," she replied. "Come back any time."

"I hope we do!" Happy trilled, flapping his wings excitedly. Andy motioned for his Pokémon to follow him and his female companion out of the Day Care house and with one final look to Pumpkin and Joan, the four Pokémon had at last put the overall adventure behind them entirely. Once outside, Andy turned to his Pokémon with pride in his eyes.

"I'm so pl-pleased with you all! You've cl-clearly been working h-h-hard while I've b-been away and I haven't s-se-seen you argue once," said Andy. He pointed at the dark-haired young woman standing next to him. "This is my co-cousin, Shannon. She's E-Emma's older sister – you remember Emma, d-don't you?" His Pokémon chattered excitedly – they knew who he was talking about. They had met Emma on a few occasions and for the most part, liked her.

"Emma's got into a b-bit of trouble in Johto and we n-n-need to get there as qu-quick as we possibly can to h-help her out," Andy went on. Shannon drew a Pokéball from her pocket and threw it, releasing a Togekiss. She climbed on its back and told Andy to do the same. When he did, he looked down at his Pokémon and realised that they were now mostly too big to fit on their transport Pokémon. He would have to carry them in their balls, which was disappointing but not inconvenient. It would reduce the risk of things going wrong due to a squabble between his team. Andy brought out their balls and prepared to return his four Pokémon, deciding that Happy could also benefit from the reduced travel time.

"Look alive t-t-team; we're g-going on an adventure!" said Andy jovially. Venusaur, Terra, Happy and Arius looked at each other and groaned unhappily. That was the last thing they wanted.

"Let's go save my sister," said Shannon, as Andy's Pokémon retracted to their respective balls. Together, they ascended into the air and flew on the back of Shannon's sleek Togekiss in the direction of Johto, where untold adventures, risky situations and more surprises awaited them.

The End.


End file.
